PROVO, Utah -- Junior Alexa Gray’s 13 kills led No. 14 BYU women’s volleyball to a three-set (25-15, 25-15, 25-13) victory over Saint Mary’s Thursday at the Smith Fieldhouse.
“I thought we executed at a high level tonight,” head coach Shawn Olmstead said. "We had a balanced attack, and Alexa was a big part of that. We wanted to get her going right off the bat."
Gray led the team with 13 kills while Jennifer Hamson chipped in 12. Gray and Whitney Young both recorded four blocks to tie for the team high. Freshman Jaiden Achermann added a career high 11 digs to lead all Cougars and Camry Godfrey Willardson contributed 30 assists.
Behind the serving of senior Hannah Robison, BYU (20-4, 11-2 West Coast Conference) jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead in the first set over Saint Mary’s (7-15, 3-9 WCC). The Gaels then responded with a 5-0 run of their own to come within one at 6-5. The Cougars gained an 11-5 advantage led by Gray and Hamson and never looked back. BYU closed out the first set 25-15 after a service ace by Tia Withers Welling.
The teams went back-and-forth to begin the second set, but after a Gray kill and a couple of errors by the Gaels, the Cougars were able to get some breathing room with a 15-8 lead. Hamson and Gray combined for 12 kills in the set as BYU defeated Saint Mary’s, 25-15, to take a two-set lead.
The third set began much like the second set with each team exchanging points. However, an 11-1 run midway through the set fueled by several Hamson kills and service ace gave the Cougars a 17-7 lead. A kill by Robison earned BYU the set 25-13, and the sweep.
The Cougars play at home again on Saturday against Pacific at 1:00 p.m. MST. Holders of a “Pass of all Passes” may attend Saturday’s game for free. The match will be televised live on BYUtv. Links to live stats and a video feed can be found on the BYU women's volleyball schedule page.